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3.5 Billion in Downtown Improvements
Underway in St. Louis
Underway in St. Louis
Like the points on a compass, major developments are rising to the North, South, East and West of the America's Center® convention complex in downtown St. Louis.
As the community builds on its fascinating history to create a more vibrant and fun-filled downtown hospitality district near the America's Center convention complex, developers are spending more than $3.5 billion on projects ranging from sports and entertainment facilities to casinos and condos.
Meeting and convention planners booking St. Louis for future dates will find a vibrant, new downtown ready to welcome their groups. Attendees will be enthralled by the wide variety of attractions in St. Louis, the charming neighborhoods, more than a thousand one-of-a-kind restaurants and the great live music and nightlife in St. Louis. Meeting planners will be even more excited to learn that downtown St. Louis currently offers 7,600 hotel rooms (5,000 of which are committable) within a mile of America's Center convention complex - including the 1,081-room Renaissance Grand Hotel & Renaissance Suites adjacent to the convention center. Area wide, there are 35,000 sleeping rooms, 10,000 of which are committable for conventions. The 26 largest hotels in St. Louis offer more than 10,000 square feet of meeting space each.
Over the past four years, more than 2,600 hotel sleeping rooms have been added to the downtown core. They include the new Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark (a complete renovation of the former Marriott Pavilion Hotel finished in spring 2006), the Renaissance Grand and Renaissance Suites, St. Louis' first Westin (named the #1 Westin in the world in 2005), the Sheraton City Center, the Drury Plaza Hotel, the Hilton St. Louis Downtown and new Hampton Inn and Residence Inn properties. Other hotel construction projects are in planning stages and existing hotels have undergone major renovations to remain first-rate and competitive in this rapidly improving environment.
To the West: Washington Avenue Redevelopment
Today when meeting attendees step outside of the main entrance to the America's Center convention complex on Washington Avenue in downtown St. Louis they see the results of a multi-million dollar streetscaping project. They also see something even more important - construction activity that is converting this former garment and warehouse district into the hottest place to live, work and play in the St. Louis region.
The $17 million street improvement project has transformed the look of Washington Avenue from the front of the America's Center convention complex at Eighth Street west to 18th Street. Project highlights in this loft and entertainment district include widened brick sidewalks, decorative lighting and signs, trees and plantings and architectural paving.
Washington Avenue, once the center of the country's largest clothing and shoe manufacturing operations, has developed into a trendy loft district that includes restaurants, residential lofts, retail and the fun and quirky City Museum - an attraction and event venue housed in a massive warehouse.
"First in Shoes, First in Booze and Last in the American Leagues," was a favorite phrase referring to St. Louis in the early 20th century. St. Louis made things: shoes, clothing, hats and hardware. Warehouses, factories and office buildings soared over the skyline and the nation's best architects built commercial structures of great beauty that would stand the test of time. Now the redevelopment of St. Louis' stock of architecturally significant buildings is contributing to the amazing renaissance of downtown as more than a thousand new lofts and condos have opened in St. Louis' historic buildings and more than 1,500 additional units are under construction for opening in 2006. Projects that have opened already are between 80 and 100 percent sold and their residents are bringing a 24-hour life to the streets of downtown.
To the South: New Ballpark & Ballpark Village
The St. Louis Cardinals have been making magic on the field in St. Louis since 1892. Now the Cardinals are finishing work on a new, privately financed field of dreams in downtown St. Louis that opened on April 10, 2006.
The $380 million project does more than just create a new playing space for the St. Louis Cardinals - the Cardinals and their developer are considering plans to redevelop the surrounding area on the south end of downtown St. Louis into a mixed-use entertainment and residential area called Ballpark Village.
The design of the new ballpark, named Busch Stadium like the previous facility, has taken into account St. Louis' rich baseball history and incorporated the best attributes of the more successful baseball parks, ensuring that it is one of America's best new sports palaces. Designed for baseball only, the new facility offers state-of-the-art seats, improved sight lines, modern amenities and improved levels of service. The ballpark also features a more open design to help improve fan comfort by offering better air circulation, more shaded seating areas, and more air-conditioned interior space.
From inside the ballpark, fans will get a spectacular view of the Gateway Arch and Downtown St. Louis. The surrounding Ballpark Village project includes restaurants, clubs, offices, retail shops and condos and townhouses.
Next door to the new ballpark, the Cupples Station development has brought new life to a group of 10 Historic railroad warehouses.
This complex is being turned into a mixed-use development on the south side of downtown St. Louis next door to Busch Stadium and the proposed Ballpark Village development. The first phase of the Cupples Station redevelopment opened in March 2001 when the Westin St. Louis debuted. The $60 million, 257-room luxury hotel was built in four of the historic district's warehouses.
Construction is underway in the other warehouses in the Cupples Station development to house apartments and condos, office space, upscale restaurants and retail, connected by airy public plazas.
Busch Stadium and Cupples Station are located less than one mile south of the America's Center convention complex. They are connected with America's Center via MetroLink light rail.
Immediately south of America's Center another of St. Louis architectural gems - the Old Post Office - has been restored and is open for business. This 1884 landmark - located just a block from the front of America's Center - was designed in the French Second Empire style as a nod to St. Louis' French heritage and the most elegant architectural styles of the day. The Old Post Office was originally built as a customs house that accommodated all the federal offices in St. Louis. It became an emblem of St. Louis' importance to the westward expansion of the United States and the region's significance in the country's post-Civil War recovery.
Today, the $286 million restoration of the Old Post Office houses a satellite campus for St. Louis-based Webster University, new Missouri Court of Appeals offices, the St. Louis Business Journal and much more. Trees, new sidewalks with granite pavers and historic light fixtures surround the restored building and a new public plaza is under development to the Old Post Office at Eighth and Locust streets.
To the East: Pinnacle Casino
On the east side of the convention center's Edward Jones Dome, Pinnacle Casino is constructing a $400 million development to include a 90,000 square-foot gaming floor, a 200-room luxury hotel, a spa, 22,000 square feet of meeting space, fine restaurants and a destination nightclub in the Laclede's Landing entertainment district.
The casino broke ground in fall 2005 and will open in the second half of 2007. The project will incorporate the existing Embassy Suites Hotel and a newly constructed hotel tower will rise over the development in a lighted arc reminiscent of the nearby Gateway Arch. Inside, the project's design will reflect the work of architect Frank Lloyd Wright with contemporary yet warm and sophisticated touches.
Pinnacle also will oversee $50 million in new residential, retail and mixed use development on the site within the five years after the casino's debut. The first condos, called Port St. Louis, will open in 2008 with 49 luxury units.
Laclede's Landing is a nine-square-block area of restored warehouses along the Mississippi River that once housed steamboat cargo. Today the historic buildings contain a collection of nightclubs, restaurants, sports bars and music venues. Horse-drawn carriages take visitors for rides along the Landing's vintage cobblestone streets throughout the year. The Landing, as locals call it, is a popular spot for off-site events and music festivals featuring St. Louis famous blues musicians. Pinnacle is constructing a pedestrian connection that will help convention attendees move from outside of the America's Center complex to the casino and Laclede's Landing.
In the Middle of the Compass: America's Center
The building in the middle of these entertaining developments, America's Center, offers convention and meeting groups up to 502,000 square feet of prime exhibit space in six contiguous halls. Also at the center are 82 flexible meeting rooms, the 1,400-seat Ferrara Theatre, a 28,000 square foot ballroom, a private conference center and plentiful pre-function space surrounded by 7,600 hotel rooms within less than a mile. The facility's Edward Jones Dome at America's Center is perfect for general sessions and entertainment events for private groups. The Dome also is home to the NFL's St. Louis Rams and major sporting events such as the Men's Final Four and a Missouri-Illinois football series that will begin a multi-year Labor Day weekend rivalry in 2007.
New Restaurants Fill Historic Buildings Near America's Center
St. Louis has always been known as a great restaurant town where visitors can find more than a thousand unique places to eat. But now it's even easier for convention attendees to find those legendary meals close to the America's Center convention complex.
The redevelopment of the Washington Avenue loft district just west of the convention center has spawned new restaurants in the hospitality district. Once the center of the country's largest clothing and shoe manufacturing operations, Washington Avenue and surrounding streets have been transformed into a trendy neighborhood that includes new restaurants by noted national chefs, nightclubs, residential lofts and retail.
Chef Larry Forgione, known as the godfather of New American cuisine, has opened his latest restaurant, An American Place, adjacent to America's Center. Located in what chef Paul Prudhomme called the most beautiful restaurant space in the nation, An American Place proudly serves regional cuisine accented with the best products available across the country to create a memorable dining experience. The restaurant is located in what was once the ornate lobby of the historic Statler hotel, built in 1917 to accommodate elite travelers.
Red Moon is a chic dining space in the newly restored Terra Cotta Lofts building. The new restaurant features Asian inspired cuisine with a French flair. Red Moon is a theatrical dining experience from the speakeasy-style alley entrance to the elaborate red and gold artistic décor. The Terra Cotta Lofts were originally built in 1915 to house an insurance company. The building now houses 99 sold-out residential lofts.
Lucas Park Grille is now open at the ground level of the Bell Lofts building. Designed to resemble a contemporary, warm and comfortable lodge, the restaurant features fireplaces and casual seating areas scattered among the traditional tables. The menu offers seasonal Midwestern specialties and diners on the go can shop at the attached market for prepared foods and packaged goods. The charming brick and sandstone building, built in 1891, was the original Bell Telephone Company headquarters for St. Louis.
Other new restaurants in the convention center area include: Mosaic, serving modern fusion cuisine; Wasabi, a sushi bar; 10th Street Italian, and two Irish pub-style spots: Flannery's Restaurant and The Dubliner. They join established downtown dining institutions including Tony's, the most honored Italian restaurant in America; Dierdorf & Harts and Mike Shannon's, two steak houses owned by sports celebrities and many others.
In the Future: Riverfront Redevelopment
The St. Louis-based Danforth Foundation is funding a study that will plan for the redevelopment of the historic St. Louis riverfront. The goal is to produce a roadmap for development of the nearly mile-long section of the riverfront between the Eads and Poplar Street bridges along the Mississippi River to create an inviting landscape. The result will showcase the importance of the Mississippi to St. Louis and to America and to allow visitors to experience the river in an attractive and comfortable environment. The plan will be finished in 2006 and work will begin on financing in the near future.
MEDIA NOTE: For more information or photography of St. Louis, send an e-mail to pr@explorestlouis.com or call Becky Sharp at 1-314-992-0652. For up-to-date information about St. Louis, your readers should call the St. Louis Convention & Visitors Commission at 1-800-916-0040 or check out our website at www.explorestlouis.com. This news release is also available in electronic form. To obtain an electronic version, e-mail your request to pr@explorestlouis.com or go to St. Louis’ online media center at www.explorestlouis.com/media.
